➤ The world of Metal finally on our PCs! 🎮

From the meeting between Tim Schafer and Jack Black, something crazy and at times brilliant could only be born, a video game that starts as a classic action, and then turns into a free-roaming with lots of means to drive up to take the appearance of a strategic one. To keep this jumble of genres together is Heavy Metal. Perhaps the less informed will be wondering why a four-year-old title comes back to be talked about: simply finally Double Fine has had the opportunity to prepare a conversion of its Brutal Legend for our dear PCs, released through Steam.

Tim Schafer's mixtape

As anticipated in the introductory hat, Brutal Legend it is one of those very difficult titles to classify, products that on paper would seem to have neither head nor tail, yet for some magical reason they manage to stay together and fascinate their own audience. The merit is undoubtedly of the two minds behind the work, who with their humor and charisma have given life to a game that amuses only by adding up its individual parts, otherwise rather tasteless. As described in detail in the review by our Matteo Santicchia, the adventure tells the story of a roadie devoted to the religion of Metal, the real one and far from the watered down music that the majors have been feeding us in recent years.

Although his work is anything but appreciated, he is a man devoted to his commitment, so much so that he died for it, sacrificing himself on stage during the last show. However, Eddie's journey has only just begun, as he will awaken in a world parallel to ours, populated by creatures that seem to have come out of the best covers of Iron Maiden and company. A land subjugated by an evil one, while our protagonist, taking up an ax and a magic guitar, will take on the role of the predestined savior. The real flagship of Brutal Legend however, it is not the gameplay, but the art direction and the hilarious curtains. And if you know and love classic Metal, what is said to be dead, then you will find yourself right at home.

We take up Ax and Guitar

The PC version of Brutal Legend it does not report any changes whatsoever, proposing itself as an adaptation practically identical to the original, without even content additions, except for the inclusion of the two DLCs. So you will begin your adventure by learning the basic combos that characterize the action component, with Eddie making his way through the enemies waving his ax and unleashing lightning emanating from his guitar.

Soon you will have the opportunity to free some Headbangers, subjects all brawn and little brain, practically capable only of moving their heads up and down. What could be made to children in these conditions? But obviously make them fall in love with Metal! So they will follow Eddie in his adventures, making himself order what to do and where to go with simple commands. Starting from here, the title sets up an elementary real-time strategy structure that will immediately appear much simplified to a PC player, partly due to precise design choices (Tim Schafer was certainly not trying to create a Starcraft with a Metallara setting!) And in part because of the control system. The pad forced the developers to do away with any kind of frills, limiting control over the units to a few commands. The transition to the PC version has not helped in the least and indeed, the title, although it works even with mouse and keyboard, cannot hide its origins. In short, a good gamepad remains the best choice.

Quick adaptation

Same content and same gameplay, therefore; Tim Schafer and associates have certainly not spent sleepless nights trying to give PC users a dedicated product. Fortunately, the graphics sector can boast some tricks instead. Let's talk about small details that enrich the aesthetics, certainly to be rewarded, of Brutal Legend. We do not have the latest technology in our hands, but rather a solid product, sought after in a somewhat cartoon style, which can boast characters modeled and animated in a truly appreciable way.

The scenarios then enjoyed a slight tweak, complete with an expanded horizon line thanks to the computing power made available by our hardware. Also of note are some new effects, such as Depth of Field, SSAO and Anti Aliasig. The settings are very limited, but the good optimization allows you to run the title on practically any configuration. For the test in addition to a Phenom II X3 with an nVidia 570 and 4 GB of RAM that did not bat an eyelid in maintaining the sixty frames per second, we tested the title on a 13-inch MacBook Pro. The equipment, being a 2011 model, boasts an Intel i5 processor, 4 GB of RAM and Intel HD3000 video card, however, it was sufficient, reducing some details, to play decently. Finally, we mention the post launch support, which has seen Double Fine already release several updates to fix some bugs and file the last edges.

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Digital Delivery: Steam Prezzo: 18,99€ Resources4Gaming.com

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Brutal Legend it is a particular title, suitable for those who like to discover products that are a little experimental, imperfect but which, on the whole, fascinate thanks to the charisma emanating from each pixel. And if you know and appreciate Heavy Metal music, you will enjoy all the quotes and jokes, part of a script that represents the real flagship of the Double Fine title. Too bad there are no real additions dedicated to PC users, except for some aesthetic improvements and the inclusion of the two DLCs, making this version suitable only for those who had lost the original.